Legal News 02/2018

Criminal defense attorney Shannon Smith is no stranger to sneers or snide comments, given her often unpopular clients. But representing Larry Nassar has triggered a backlash she has never seen before: several death threats, loads of hate mail and nasty ...(Feb 1, 2018, Detroit Free Press)

“I couldn't detect anything wrong with this guy,” he said of Paddock. The ammunition sale took place at Haig's home in Mesa, because he didn't have all the ammunition on hand that Paddock wanted while at the gun show. Victor said a box that Paddock ...(Feb 1, 2018, New York Post)

On Tuesday, Weinstein's lawyer Ben Brafman issued to E! News a rare statement directly in response to the actress, accusing her of trying to "smear" the producer "with a bold lie" that is "denied" by Weinstein and "at least two witnesses," including Ms ...(Feb 1, 2018, E! Online)

With a record of clients that also includes Kirk Kerkorian, Keith Olbermann and Conan O'Brien, the firm's website says she “tops the short list of trial attorneys in the nation sought after for high-stakes litigation.” Over the course of a 40-plus-year ...(Feb 1, 2018, Variety)

In an opinion handed down late Wednesday in a long-running legal wrangle over groceries, Chief Judge Ed Carnes repeatedly slapped down the trial court judge and the lawyer who persuaded him to ignore instructions issued by the circuit in an earlier ...(Feb 1, 2018, Law.com)

But Mill lawyer Joseph Tacopina, who has been at the forefront of pressing claims of bias against Brinkley in the public arena, showed no sign of being rattled Thursday by Peruto or his threats of legal action. “We look forward to a lawsuit from the ...(Feb 1, 2018, Philly.com)

Charlie Walk Hires Power Lawyer Patty Glaser in Harassment Fight

Republic Records Group president Charlie Walk has hired attorney Patty Glaser of Glaser Weil Fink Howard Avchen & Shapiro LLP to fight sexual misconduct allegations leveled against him this week. Those claims have caused Walk to be placed on leave at ...(Feb 1, 2018, Billboard)

Lawyers for Manafort Deputy Rick Gates Ask to Withdraw From Case

In an email, Wu declined to comment, citing an order from the judge barring the parties and their lawyers from communicating with the press about issues material to the case. A spokesman for Mack said the lawyer had no comment and McAvoy did not ...(Feb 1, 2018, Law.com)

Attorneys for Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke have subpoenaed the Chicago Tribune and two other newspapers for copies of every story published on the officer's 2014 fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald, according to a source familiar with the case ...(Feb 2, 2018, Chicago Tribune)

A corporate lawyer in Minneapolis fights for low-income tenants

Working pro bono with a team of lawyers and assistants at the law firm Faegre Baker Daniels, Cockson uncovered a secret financial arrangement between Stephen Frenz, one of the city's most controversial landlords, and Spiros Zorbalas, who was ordered in ...(Feb 2, 2018, Minneapolis Star Tribune)

Larry Nassar's lawyer doubts he could have assaulted so many people

In the aftermath of his lawyer's comments, Nassar sought to distance himself from them. "I was not aware that these statements were going to be made nor did I authorize them. As I have repeatedly said under oath, the plea agreements are accurate and I ...(Feb 2, 2018, CNN)

DENVER (Reuters) - A former Colorado flight nurse who survived a helicopter ambulance crash with horrific burns over 90 percent of his body will receive a record $100 million cash settlement from the maker and operator of the aircraft, his lawyer said ...(Feb 2, 2018, Reuters)

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya on Friday arrested an opposition lawyer and defied a court order to lift a ban on three private television stations that had covered the symbolic presidential inauguration of opposition leader Raila Odinga. Miguna Miguna has ...(Feb 2, 2018, Reuters)

Story that NFL lawyer said Super Bowl rigged and was murdered is fake news

Days before the Super Bowl, fake news articles circulating on Facebook claimed that a National Football League lawyer named Dan Goodes was shot dead in a "gangland-style execution" hours after blowing the whistle on the "rigged Super Bowl." "NFL lawyer ...(Feb 2, 2018, PolitiFact)

Cosby Retains New Lawyer for Retrial on Sexual Assault Charges

In the motion, which doesn't state a reason for the withdrawal bid, he noted that Cosby's remaining lawyers, Tom Mesereau, Kathleen Bliss, Jason Hicks and Becky James, would need to find a new Pennsylvania lawyer to sponsor their pro hac vice admission ...(Feb 2, 2018, Law.com)

Be A Real Trial Lawyer: Be A Generalist

Instead, his question was more like, “Have you ever handled an oil and gas case involving Canadian shale with a minority business partner based in Ukraine?” The matter did not actually involve oil and gas, nor Canadian shale, nor an entity based in ...(Feb 2, 2018, Above the Law)

Well-known free-speech attorney Douglas Mirell is leaving the law firm he co-founded with Charles Harder, saying he feels the company's work for clients like President Donald Trump doesn't reflect his interest in protecting the First Amendment and that ...(Feb 3, 2018, Hollywood Reporter)

“We won't be intimidated, especially by a lawyer, who visited Meek Mill days after he was sentenced and also called his defense team to try to get hired and offer him his legal services on this matter,” ​Tacopina said. “Additionally, he has changed his ...(Feb 3, 2018, Complex)

Nashville Mayor's Lawyer: There Are No Other Affairs

Barry's lawyer, former U.S. Attorney Jerry E. Martin, sent a letter Friday to various news organizations. "The Mayor has been fully forthcoming about her relationship with Sgt. Rob Forrest," Martin wrote. "There are no other inappropriate relationships ...(Feb 3, 2018, NewsChannel5.com)

Lawyer who filed false tax return suspended

A local lawyer who admitted he filed a false tax return was suspended from practicing law by the Ohio Supreme Court Friday. John J. Manore III, 60, pleaded guilty Aug. 22 in U.S. District to one count of filing a false tax return for underreporting his ...(Feb 3, 2018, Toledo Blade)

More curiously, it was founded not by some fly-by-night 1-800-SPLIT-NOW type but by Laura Wasser, the affluent Beverly Hills-adjacent lawyer who has represented Angelina Jolie, Britney Spears, Jennifer Garner and Christina Aguilera, among other famous ...(Feb 3, 2018, New York Times)

The New Jersey man convicted of planting bombs in Chelsea does not deserve multiple life sentences and should be able to further his education and see his family while spending the rest of his life in prison, his lawyer argued on Friday. Ahmad Khan ...(Feb 3, 2018, amNY)

In the fight to defend 'Dreamers,' this lawyer has a personal stake ...

In the fight to defend 'Dreamers,' this lawyer has a personal stake ...(Feb 3, 2018, PBS NewsHour)

A lawyer came to court drunk, the Bar says. That was just the start of his problems.

A Florida lawyer with the name “Pickles” showed up in court pickled and found himself in a pickle with the Internal Revenue Service over years of unpaid income taxes, the Florida Bar said. The state Supreme Court also found fault with this behavior ...(Feb 4, 2018, Miami Herald)

Joe Torres has more on how the Chelsea bomber's lawyer says he does not deserve multiple klife sentences. WABC. Eyewitness News. Sunday, February 04, 2018 05:45PM. CHELSEA, Manhattan (WABC) --. In a letter to the judge, the lawyer for accused Chelsea ...(Feb 4, 2018, WABC-TV)

Javier Armengau, a former Columbus lawyer serving a 13-year sentence for sexually assaulting three women with connections to his law practice, was supposed to have a hearing last week to consider a possible reduction in his sentence. That hearing is on ...(Feb 4, 2018, The Columbus Dispatch)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) – Nearly 2,000 more Kentuckians could lose their disability benefits because of the ongoing fraud investigation involving Eric Conn. According to the Social Security Administration, those who received disability benefits ...(Feb 5, 2018, WHAS 11.com)

SEOUL, Feb 5 (Reuters) - The lawyer for Samsung Group heir Jay Y. Lee said on Monday his client plans to appeal to the Supreme Court after he was found guilty of some charges by an appeals court, even though his sentence was suspended and he was able ...(Feb 5, 2018, Reuters)

His lawyer, Ruslan Chernolutsky, said the ruling would likely pave the way for Saakashvili's departure from Ukraine. “We all need to be prepared for the fact that the authorities in an illegal manner will take the decision on his compulsory deportation ...(Feb 5, 2018, Voice of America)

Guantánamo Lawyer Discusses Detainees' Rights to Their Art

Protesting the ban on art leaving the base, the lawyers argue that the new regulations are counter-productive, as the art program has historically helped Guantánamo function more smoothly and made authorities' jobs easier. “The benefits of art classes ...(Feb 5, 2018, Hyperallergic)

ABA Passes Measure on Lawyer Substance Abuse and Mental Health

The nation's largest lawyer group on Monday formally declared that the profession should step up to help attorneys with mental health and substance abuse issues and improve overall well-being. The American Bar Association's House of Delegates adopted a ...(Feb 5, 2018, Law.com)

7-Year Sentence for Ex-IP Lawyer Over $2M Money Laundering Scheme

As reported earlier in the Washington Post, Ho's fall from grace followed a lengthy career as an IP lawyer at several firms. He became a Big Law partner at age 33 while at Arent Fox, according to the Post, and an old biography from his most recent firm ...(Feb 5, 2018, Law.com)

Many Say He's the Least Qualified Lawyer Ever to Lead a Guantánamo Case. He Agrees.

But a courtroom dispute involving classified snooping prompted nearly all of the team to abruptly quit this fall, leaving only a 39-year-old former SEAL turned lawyer with just six years' experience, and none with a capital case. By many assessments ...(Feb 5, 2018, New York Times)

6 Lawyer Teams Vie for Leadership Posts in Equifax Data Breach

Thrash told lawyers at a hearing last month that he planned to establish two tracks in the multidistrict litigation—one for consumers and one for financial institutions. He also indicated that he wanted the leadership teams to be thin. Lawyers filed ...(Feb 6, 2018, Law.com)

Jack Sharman, the lawyer who headed the Alabama House Judiciary Committee's impeachment investigation of then-Gov. Robert Bentley, said that in a grand jury case, prosecutors present evidence in complete secrecy. The decision to file charges is made by ...(Feb 6, 2018, NBCNews.com)

Kenya: Bring Detained Lawyer to Court

(Nairobi) – Kenyan police should urgently produce Miguna Miguna, an opposition party lawyer who was arrested in Nairobi on February 2, 2018, Human Rights Watch said today. He is among three people, including two members of parliament, arrested in a ...(Feb 6, 2018, Human Rights Watch)

Trump's Lawyers Want Him to Refuse an Interview in Russia Inquiry

WASHINGTON — Lawyers for President Trump have advised him against sitting down for a wide-ranging interview with the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, according to four people briefed on the matter, raising the specter of a monthslong court ...(Feb 6, 2018, New York Times)

Even Trump's Lawyers Are Worried He'll Lie to Mueller

Asked more than a decade ago whether he had ever lied in public statements about his real-estate properties, Donald Trump gave a prophetic answer. “I'm no different from a politician running for office,” he said. “You always want to put the best foot ...(Feb 6, 2018, Vanity Fair)

Burt Handelsman quizzed about love of lawyer in battle over empire

Lucille “Lovey” Handelsman, 89, leaves court after a morning of testimony by her husband, Burt Handelsman, 90, in their divorce trial Tuesday, February 6, 2018. In dispute is the $500 million-plus real estate fortune that the Palm Beach couple began ...(Feb 6, 2018, Palm Beach Post)

Another Lawyer Guilty In $20 Million Pump-And-Dump Scheme

A Colorado lawyer pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiring with a half-dozen others in the $20 million, Connecticut-based stock swindle that sent former Hartford attorney and City Councilor Corey Brinson to prison a year ago. Diane D. Dalmy, a suburban ...(Feb 6, 2018, Hartford Courant)

Lawyer for Ex-CIA Man: My Client Is Not a Chinese Spy

Lawyer for Ex-CIA Man: My Client Is Not a Chinese Spy. The lawyer for a former CIA officer accused of illegally retaining classified records is defending his client against accusations he was a Chinese spy. Feb. 6, 2018, at 4:26 p.m.. Lawyer for Ex-CIA ...(Feb 6, 2018, U.S. News & World Report)

Decision upholds Connecticut lawyer's suspension from practicing law in Maine

He subsequently withdrew as the lawyer for the family members. In its decision to uphold the lower court ruling, the Law Court said that throughout the appeal, Burbank “consistently disregarded standards of law and practice.” “He has asserted legal ...(Feb 6, 2018, Press Herald)

Lawyer who won case for ex-client wants more than settlement money

A lawyer who successfully sued the Bronx District Attorney's Office for terminating a prosecutor after she started using a wheelchair isn't satisfied with netting just 25 percent of his client's $50,000 back-pay settlement. The lawyer, Mark Moody, is ...(Feb 7, 2018, New York Post)

Biden: If I were Trump's lawyer, I would advise against Mueller interview

Former Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday said President Donald Trump has "some difficulty with precision" and that he would tell him to not consent to an interview with special counsel Robert Mueller. "You are in a situation where the President has ...(Feb 7, 2018, Politico)